Rage
by sandybeliever
Summary: It was then that Johnny felt the hairs on the back of his neck go up. He glanced at Roy opening the front door and back at the panel truck down the road. It was still there, the lights now out but the engine running roughly. "Roy, no!"


**Rage**

Johnny maneuvered the Land Rover through the dark streets of Los Angeles on his way to Roy's house. He was so lost in his own thoughts that he temporarily forgot about his passengers until Joanne shifted in the back and made him jump. He covered the slight startle with his own adjustment in his seat.

"Tired of driving?" Roy said from the passenger seat.

"Nah, not much. Its only about fifteen more minutes anyway, traffic is so easy at this time of night." He saw Roy nod out of the corner of his eye. Johnny glanced at his rear view mirror tilting his head up to see Joanne. She looked tired and worn out, just like he felt.

It had been a long hard day. Emilio Cruz, a brother from Station 10, had been killed in the line of duty. Today was the funeral. Emilio's parents had invited everyone up to Ventura to their home afterwards. Joanne had left the kids with her sister and they would pick them up tomorrow.

Johnny's stomach clenched. He had started at 10 and even though Emilio had not worked in the department until after he left, Johnny felt a bond with the man. Heck, all firefighters feel a bond, he thought. Emilio was young and had only been a firefighter for about two years. Johnny and Roy hadn't had the opportunity to know him very well yet. Now they never would. Johnny ran his hand through his hair and his jaw clenched. Joanne saw it.

"Johnny, please stay tonight. It's late and you are exhausted. I'll worry about you if you go home this late." She said, her voice pleading. Johnny tipped his head and met her eyes in the rear view mirror. He smiled for her.

"Yeah, Johnny, please stay." Roy said quietly from beside him. He was fighting his own demons with Emilio's death and Johnny knew it.

"Okay, I'll stay. Thank you," he said glancing back at Joanne and then at Roy.

A few minutes later, Johnny made the turn onto the DeSoto's street. As he approached the house, he noticed a small panel truck pull away from the side of the street, pass him and then slow down. Johnny glanced back at the brake lights wondering if the driver was lost. He pulled into the driveway, shut down the engine and leaned his head back against the headrest. He was suddenly too wiped out to even move and noticed Roy and Joanne didn't seem in a rush to leave the car either.

Roy reached out and put his hand on Johnny's shoulder. "Tough day." He stated, giving Johnny's shoulder a squeeze.

With all the effort he could muster, Johnny reached down and opened the Land Rover door and slid out. Roy did the same and then helped his wife out of the backseat.

"Roy, I thought you left the front porch light on." Joanne said, stifling a yawn.

Fishing his house keys out of his pocket, Roy replied, "I'm sorry, I thought I did but I must have forgotten." Roy stood at the door with Joanne behind him and Johnny trailing behind.

"Shit," Roy said angrily. "That's not the only thing I forgot, the front door is unlocked too." Ordinarily that oversight would have earned Roy a tongue lashing he wouldn't soon forget but this time Joanne just reached up and rubbed her hand across her husband's weary shoulders.

It was then that Johnny felt the hairs on the back of his neck go up. He glanced at Roy opening the front door and back at the panel truck down the road. It was still there, the lights now out but the engine running roughly.

"Roy, _no_!" Johnny shouted bolting up onto the porch. Roy had reached in and flicked on the lights inside the door.

Just as Johnny grabbed onto Joanne's shoulders to stop her from entering the house behind Roy, he saw a flash of movement and Roy went down. The sickening thud of the bat hitting his partner was not only heard by John Gage but felt. He stumbled momentarily, overcome with fear and dread. Joanne screamed beside him.

"Get to a neighbor and call the police!" Johnny shouted. He heard the panel van's tires screech as it took off into the night. Johnny vaulted through the front door and over Roy who was on his knees slumped over. He spotted the dark figure that wielded the bat head out the back slider onto the patio. Johnny's long legs made the distance in only a few steps. His feet left the ground and he came down hard onto the back of the assailant, the bat flying out of the person's hand and clattering across the bricks.

In one swift move, Johnny flipped the attacker onto their back and ripping the hood from the man's face. He punched him across the face with a balled up right fist while gripping the black sweatshirt with his left hand, momentarily stunning him. Johnny hit him again but before he could make another move, the man's leg came up and hit Johnny in the groin causing his breath to shoot out of him. He grunted in agony.

With Johnny stunned, the man made his move and rose partially up to his feet but Johnny rallied enough to kick him in the ribs. It was the attacker's turn to grunt and lose his breath; he fell to his side gripping his mid-section. Johnny was on him again, lifting the man from the ground by the front of his sweatshirt. Johnny hit him with another punch, blood flying from his split lip. With blinding hatred, Johnny pummeled at the face beneath him, eventually letting go of the grip on the sweatshirt as the man stopped struggling, both fists now free to strike out at this person that dared hurt his friend.

From behind him he felt someone grab at him he shot his left elbow back into someone's ribs and continued to pound at the now unconscious man.

"Johnny! _Stop!_" he felt Roy's arms slip under his own and hook so he could no longer reach the intruder but Johnny continued to struggle. Again Roy called out his name. Johnny finally relented and spun to see Roy's face.

"Roy? Roy, are you okay?" he said standing reaching for his partner but Roy knocked Johnny's hand away. The sound of sirens could be heard in the distance.

"What are you doing?" Roy shouted as he knelt beside the unconscious figure and reached for his wrist to check his pulse.

Johnny stumbled back. "Me?" He pulled Roy's hand from the man's wrist. "Leave him!" he said through clenched teeth, his anger still boiling inside of him.

Roy looked up stunned. "Listen to yourself, Johnny." He went back to assessing his attacker who was now his patient. Roy could see from the light spilling from the sliding glass door that the man's face was covered in blood, both eyes and his lips swelling. He probed the bones in the face, head and neck.

"I don't think anything is broken."

Johnny kicked at a patio chair, sending it careening across the yard. The sirens were now in front of the house. He saw Roy glance nervously at him and then step into the living room. With one eye still trained on his partner, Roy shouted into the living room.

"In here!" A police officer had stepped through the front door with his gun drawn followed by another officer. Roy raised his arms. "The intruder is out here, I'm Roy DeSoto; this is my house."

"Stay right where you are, sir." The first officer said loudly. "Who is out there with you?"

Roy didn't move. "I'm a firefighter with LA County. My partner, John Gage is out here. He caught the intruder who is now unconscious. I need you to call for an ambulance."

Just then Joanne was escorted into the house by a third officer. "Ma'am, can you identify these men?"

"Yes," Joanne sobbed, "that's my husband and the other man is Johnny Gage. Roy, are you alright?"

Hearing those words snapped Johnny out of his reverie enough to ask the same question as the officers lowered their guns and moved out onto the patio.

"I'm okay, honey, I have to help this man." With the guns no longer pointed at him, Roy returned to the side of the man lying on the patio.

~ E ~

Johnny sat silently on the DeSoto's couch. His only movement was caused by his ragged breath and the slow clenching and unclenching of his fists. He had given his statement to the police while Roy gave the paramedics from Squad 36 the information on the '_victim_.' Joanne had insisted Roy be taken in to the hospital too but he maintained he was fine. He had a welt on his right shoulder, having been lucky that the bat had missed his head. He allowed his fellow paramedics to check him over to ease Joanne's mind and they and Rampart agreed Roy did not have to be brought in but should follow up with a family doctor. Johnny had brushed away any attention to his bloodied and swollen knuckles.

Roy shut the door as the last of the police officers left. It had been decided that nothing had been stolen from the house before Roy, Joanne and Johnny had arrived.

Joanne stifled a sob and reached for Roy. He held her and swayed slowly, trying to calm her down.

Johnny looked up and studied his partner and his wife carefully. Were they really okay?

"Joanne, could you make us some coffee, sweetie?" Roy said, brushing Joanne's hair from her face and glancing over at Johnny. Joanne nodded and disappeared into the kitchen.

Johnny watched her go and then turned his attention back to Roy. He didn't understand the expression on Roy's face. Roy crossed the room and stood in front of Johnny.

"Are you okay?" both men said in unison but there was no laughter at the shared comment; not this time.

"Johnny, what happened out there?" Roy asked nodding his head toward the back slider.

"What do you mean?" Johnny asked, genuinely confused.

"You…scared me." Roy said quietly. Johnny suddenly understood Roy's expression. He felt like Roy was looking at a wild animal but he was looking at _him._

"I scared you? _I _scared _you_?" Johnny's voice was rising. "Roy, that guy was in your house, he…" Johnny motioned toward Roy not being able to describe the terror he felt when he saw Roy drop to his knees.

Johnny jumped up from his seat on the couch and was surprised to see Roy take a step back. He started to pace back and forth in front of the couch, his hands raking through his hair.

"Take it easy." Roy said. Johnny whirled. "I can't just take it easy, Roy." Johnny didn't want to see the fright in his best friend's eyes so he dashed out onto the patio. He closed his eyes and breathed in the cool night air. It didn't help and he began pacing anew. He saw Roy just beyond the slider. He didn't want to come out here with him. The thought that he was scaring his partner just made him more angry and upset, he started breathing heavily and wanted to run – just run until he was far away from this miserable night, this miserable day. But he couldn't escape, he needed to make things right. He stopped his pacing and grabbed onto the back of a patio chair to steady himself. Roy took a step forward then. Johnny remembered kicking the other chair across the yard. Roy thought he was going to do something like that again. He pulled his hands away from the chair and reached up to grab his hair in both fists.

Joanne's voice came from behind Roy. "What's going on?" Johnny heard the innocent confusion in her voice and his breath caught in his throat but he couldn't hold it back and a sob escaped him.

Joanne began to move toward him but Roy put out his arm and stopped her. Johnny drew a breath in with a hiss; he felt completely out of control. Adrenalin surged and he again felt the need to run. He began pacing again.

Joanne pushed Roy's arm down and stepped out onto the patio.

"Johnny, baby," she said sweetly. Johnny shut his eyes, squeezing them tightly. He opened them and looked from Joanne to Roy and back to Joanne again. "Come here, sweetie," she said, speaking to him like she spoke to her kids. It was the same voice she used with him with when he was sick or hurt.

"Jo…" Roy began but Joanne quickly put her hand up to silence him. Johnny wasn't sure if Roy was going to speak to Joanne or to him.

Joanne put her hand out toward him; it brushed his right arm as he passed. He turned to pace back the other way when her hand found his left arm, her fingers encircling his wrist. The feeling of her touch stopped Johnny's pacing so quickly, he staggered.

"There you go, baby." Joanne stepped closer to him taking his other wrist in her free hand. Johnny drew in quick ragged breaths and felt the adrenalin start to leave his system. He looked down at the woman he had come to know as his big sister and tears stung his eyes.

"He…he was going to…" the tears started to fall, streaking his face. "He was going to hurt my family."

With that Johnny fell into her arms and began to sob. Joanne wrapped her arms around him and patted his back. She began to sway just as Roy had done for her earlier. Johnny let himself cry until his legs began to give out. He felt another set of arms around him. Roy led Johnny, still wrapped around Joanne, into the living room and eased him onto the couch.

"Sh, sh," Joanne soothed. "We are okay, Johnny. Roy's okay. You took care of us." She lifted Johnny's head off her shoulder and looked into Johnny's red rimmed eyes. "Shhhh," she said kissing his cheek. Johnny leaned back in and placed his head back on her shoulder. She smoothed the hair on the back of his head until the sobs began to subside.

"Roy, can you get him a glass of water?" Johnny heard Roy mumble 'sure' and head into the kitchen. He allowed Joanne to again push him off her shoulder. "There you go, take a breath." Johnny did as he was told, drawing in a long tattered breath. Roy came back into the room as Johnny leaned back into the couch cushions. He rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands then wiped the tears away with the back of his hand. Joanne took the glass from Roy and handed it to Johnny but still kept contact with him by holding his free hand.

Johnny gulped down the cool liquid and handed the glass back. "Thanks," he mumbled. He felt his face turn crimson, suddenly very ashamed of his display of emotion. He couldn't bring himself to look up at Roy.

Joanne brushed the hair from Johnny's face and smiled. "Better now?" she said, still in that motherly voice.

Johnny nodded, and found himself unable to stop himself from taking in a very deep breath. The last time he had cried that hard was when he lost his parents.

Joanne patted his arm. "I'll be right back. I'm going to get you a cool cloth." Johnny had to stop himself from grabbing onto the woman. He didn't want to be left alone with Roy just yet. He still had not looked up.

After a minute, he leaned forward resting his elbows on his knees. "I'm sorry," he said quickly. When he didn't get a response, he slowly raised his eyes to meet his partner's. Roy looked stunned. Johnny looked away quickly. "I…I don't know what happened. I saw you go down and I just…"

"Lost it." Roy said. Johnny looked up and saw what he thought was a slight smile on his friend's face.

"Huh?"

"Johnny, you completely lost it." Roy seemed pleased and it made Johnny uncomfortable.

Joanne came back in the room and wiped the cool damp cloth across Johnny's cheeks. "Thank, Jo, I've got it." Johnny said, taking the towel from her and leaning back into the couch. "It has just been the worst day," he began. "When I realized something was wrong, I…"

"Lost it." Roy said again and Johnny let out an exasperated breath. Roy leaned forward and smiled outright. "Johnny, I admit you scared the hell out of me out there but I think that if the tables were turned, if you and Joanne were in danger – or worse, the kids – I can't say that I wouldn't have done the same thing." He reached out to rest a hand on Johnny's knee. "Thank you," he stated.

"Well…you're welcome." Johnny couldn't help but make the statement sound more like a question. He looked at Joanne who was beaming now. Her two men had 'kissed and made up' and she thought she would burst from pride.

"Are you okay now, Johnny?" she said, taking the cloth from his hands.

Johnny thought for a moment and then looked sheepish. He leaned over and rolled up his right pant leg to reveal a very ugly bleeding lump on his shin. "I hurt myself when I kicked the chair across the yard."

As Joanne left the room with a promise of ice and bandages, Roy started laughing deeply.

"What's so funny, Roy?" Johnny said, not sure why his injury would make him laugh.

"You are, Johnny. You are."

Johnny propped his leg up on the coffee table to wait for Joanne to return. He gave Roy a confused look that got Roy laughing even harder.

"And you think _I'm _strange," Johnny said.

The End


End file.
